Human remains pulled from Yellow River in Newton County

Human remains were pulled from the Yellow River Sunday morning, officials said.

A fisherman reported the body about 5:30 p.m. Saturday, but Newton County deputies couldn’t remove the remains before dark, Newton County sheriff’s spokesman Jeff Alexander said in a news release.

“Efforts were made to remove the body from the river, but darkness and time of day along with the situation in which the body was located and the rapid movement of the river made it difficult to remove,” Alexander said. “The decision was made to post a deputy at the scene and return at daylight.”

Sheriff’s deputies returned Sunday and took the body out of the river. It was then taken to the Newton County Coroner’s Office.

The body has been taken to the state crime lab to determine identity and cause of death.